Battle heats up over Tarkine heritage listing

Unions and environmentalists are battling over the future of Tasmania's pristine Tarkine region in the state's north-west.

The area, which is home to the largest tract of temperate rainforest in the Southern Hemisphere, could see several new open cut mines being developed.

The Tarkine had emergency national heritage listing for 12 months but it ran out two years ago and now mining groups are looking to capitalise.

On top of a number of mining proposals already being assessed, there are dozens of exploration licences being granted.

Environment Minister Tony Burke says environmental impacts for each project should be considered separately.

"I'd be surprised if it's a blanket listing across the whole area," he said.

"I'll wait for the advice to come back, but certainly I'm minded to look at what are the areas where you would want to put the highest level of focus on.

"They are a number of kilometres from each other, they're a different ecological character between them, and therefore the environmental issues that you take into account are different from place to place."

Greens leader Christine Milne has been meeting with Tony Burke to lobby for a reinstatement of the heritage listing.

She says she believes all the proposals should be assessed together so the cumulative impact will be examined.

"Before you know it, you've destroyed the whole area," she said.

"That is where Minister Burke is taking the Tarkine at the moment."

"I think when it comes to the Tarkine, The Minister has failed to take his responsibility as the Federal Environment Minister seriously."

'Exciting opportunity'

Australian Workers' Union (AWU) national secretary Paul Howes says, with the economy teetering on recession and unemployment near 8 per cent, the mines are an exciting opportunity.

"There are a number of exciting deposits and a number of exciting potential mines in that region, but also expansions of existing mines including Savage River," he said.

"Two new mining leases have been granted, and another three have been applied for – most of them are open cut mines.

"We think it's important that when the Federal Government makes this decision that they're not just listening to [environmental groups], but they're also listening to the people who live and work and have had families in that region for generations."

He says the focus should be on jobs and says the AWU will run a national advertising campaign in newspapers and online to lobby the Mr Burke.

Ben Maynard, from Grange Resources, says there can be a balance between mining and conservation concerns.

"We're an iron ore mine, so we mine a product called magnetite, and we mine that here with our dump trucks, shovels and excavators," he said.

As part of its mining lease, Grange Resources has had to rehabilitate some of the problems it inherited when it took over the mine.

Mr Maynard says there have been a number of successes.

"There can be a balance between mining and environmental and conservation," Mr Maynard said.

"A lot of the people that work here really love this environment and are deeply connected to it.

"There's a lot of economic wealth and growth to be had from mining here, but it needs to be done in balance."

Poisonous legacy

Conservationists say the region should be permanently protected and turned into a drawcard for tourists.

The Tarkine is home to the last disease-free population of the endangered Tasmanian devil, and GetUp's Paul Oosting says mining could have serious consequences on the animals.

"Species like the Tasmanian devil won't get a proper hearing," he said.

"Scientists won't be able to bring forward the full case that will mount to show that these mines will endanger the last healthy population of the Tasmanian devil on the face of the planet."

Tasmania has a lengthy history of environmental activism.

A five-year struggle eventually saw the Franklin River Dam project scrapped in 1983.

Scott Jordan, from the Tarkine National Coalition, says older mines, like the Aberfoyle Tin Mine have left a poisonous legacy.

"You can smell this pond, before you can see it ... and the overflow goes uninterrupted into the Whyte River," he said.

"What we see is the acidification of the tailings, and the leaching out of iron particulates from the rock in the tailings dams.

"And we're seeing the effects – six kilometres of the Whyte River impacted by this orange sludge that's coming out of the tailings dams."

Scott Jordan says he is holding back more extreme green groups from entering the Tarkine, and taking direct action ... but that will only last so long.

"If the Federal Government goes ahead and improves new mining in this area, then I think what they're basically walking into is the next Franklin River campaign," he said.